When internal comms go wrong...

When internal communications go wrong in multi-location brands, they really go wrong.

A well-intentioned message from HQ can feel totally irrelevant to local teams, off-brand, and out of sync with regional realities.

Over time, this leads to disengagement, frustration, and—critically—damaged brand and culture.

The challenge?

Tone of voice, branding, and relevancy. These are non-negotiables in external marketing, but they often slip through the cracks internally.

The result?

A high frequency of off-brand, generic, or irrelevant messaging that makes regional teams feel unheard rather than empowered.

Why Does This Happen?

• One-size-fits-all messaging – A centralised team crafts messages assuming they’ll land the same way across all regions. They don’t.
  
  
• Lack of local insight – What matters at HQ isn’t always what matters on the ground. Local teams need communications that reflect their challenges and wins.
  
  
• Disjointed tone of voice – When different teams draft their own comms without a shared framework, consistency suffers. Messages feel disjointed, off-brand, or even conflicting.
  
  
• Message fatigue – Bombarding teams with irrelevant updates leads to disengagement. When everything is “important,” nothing is.

The Cost of Getting It Wrong:

• Brand dilution – If internal messaging doesn’t align with external brand values, customer experience suffers.
  
  
• Cultural fragmentation – When different locations receive mixed messages, it erodes a sense of shared purpose.
  
  
• Frustration and inefficiency – If teams have to sift through irrelevant updates to find what matters, productivity drops.

This isn’t just theory—it’s happening at scale.

Research from Gallagher’s State of the Sector Internal Communication and Employee Experience 2023/24 report found that 60% of internal communications professionals struggle with audience relevance, and 42% say brand alignment is a major challenge.

These aren’t just minor issues—they’re roadblocks to business success.

How We’re Fixing It:

Working with Stellantis Performance Academy, we’ve helped transform internal comms, achieving engagement rates as high as 90%.

By aligning messaging with local needs, reinforcing brand voice, and ensuring absolute relevance, we’ve turned internal comms into a strategic asset, not an afterthought.

We’re now working with other multi-location brands to:

• Build internal comms strategies that balance brand consistency with local relevance
• Streamline messaging to cut through the noise and drive real engagement
• Train teams to write with a unified but adaptable tone of voice

If your internal comms feel disconnected, off-brand, or simply ineffective, let’s talk.

The right message, in the right tone, to the right people—it makes all the difference.

To learn more about how we achieved these results, check out the full case study.

We've also got free podcasts & webinars, whitepapers and guides if you'd like more insights into marketing with a network of retailers or partners.

Or if you’d like more detailed advice, schedule a FREE 30-minute discovery call.